The Personality Puzzle

by Funder, David C.

• ISBN13: 9780393928587
• ISBN10: 0393928586
• Edition: 4th
• Format: Hardcover
• Copyright: 2007-03-23
• Publisher: W. W. Norton & Company

Summary

The Personality Puzzle offers everything students need to gain a sure understanding of personality psychology -- balanced coverage of classic and contemporary theories, accessible organization and pedagogy -- and the lively, often humorous prose of experienced teacher David Funder. Organized around the field\'s major domains/paradigms -- trait, biological, psychoanalytic, humanistic and crosscultural, and cognitive and learning -- the text outlines the foundations of personality psychology and emphasizes the significance of contemporary research. A new capstone chapter on personality disorders synthesizes these domains/paradigms. The Fourth Edition adds a new chapter on cognition and the self, new coverage of the "Big Five" personality traits and of personality in a developmental context, and a new Student Website to enable effective study and review. Takes a Contemporary Domains/Paradigm-Based Approach By organizing the text around major domains/paradigms -- trait, biological, psychoanalytic, humanistic and cross-cultural, and cognitive and learning -- The Personality Puzzle offers a broad view of the discipline\'s theories and research in an easy-to-understand format. A new chapter on personality disorders concludes the book by clarifying how the six paradigms are closely interrelated. Expanded Coverage of Contemporary Research The Fourth Edition\'s expanded coverage of contemporary research includes a more detailed treatment of the "Big Five" personality traits, a new discussion of personality traits across the lifespan, up-to-date coverage of the biological and cultural aspects of personality, a new chapter on the self, and updated coverage of cognition, motivation, and emotion. Theory in the Context of Everyday Life To help students understand the theories discussed in the book, Professor Funder includes, in each chapter, interludes that clarify concepts by demonstrating their relevance to everyday life. For the Fourth Edition, Professor Funder has added a question set at the end of each chapter that challenges students to apply what they learn in a real-world context.

Table of Contents

(Introduction): The Study of the Person

Research Methods

Clues to Personality: The Basic Sources of Data

Personality Psychology as Science: Research Methods

How People Differ: The Trait Approach

Personality Traits and Behavior

Personality Assessment I: Personality Testing and Its Consequences

Personality Assessment II: Personality Judgment in Daily Life

Using Personality Traits to Understand Behavior (Heavily Revised)

New updated treatment of the "Big Five" and development of personality over the lifespan

The Mind and the Body: Biological Approaches to Personality

The Anatomy and Physiology of Personality NEW updated treatment of brain imaging and fMRI scans

The Inheritance of Personality

Behavioral Genetics and Evolutionary Theory NEW section on molecular genetics

The Hidden World of the Mind: The Psychoanalytic Approach

Basics of Psychoanalysis

The Workings of the Unconscious Mind: Defenses and Slips

Psychoanalysis after Freud: The Neo-Freudians, Object Relations, and Empirical Evidence

Experience and Awareness: Humanistic and Cross-Cultural Psychology

Experience , Existence, and the Meaning of Life: Humanistic Psychology

Cultural Variation in Experience, Behavior, and Personality

New updated treatment of multiculturalism and individual differences in acculturation

The Person and the Situation: Learning and Cognitive Approaches to Personality

How the World Creates Who You Are: Behaviorism and Social Learning Theory

Personality Processes: Perception, Thought, Motivation, and Emotion

NEW updated treatment of emotion, including a new section on happiness

What You Know About You: The Self (New Chapter)

New chapter integrates material previously spread across the cognitive domain

Disorders of Personality (New Chapter)

New capstone chapter that acts as a synthesis point for the major paradigms

Conclusion: Looking Back and Looking Ahead

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